PERFECT PRESSIES
You know how I feel about gifts. I want to get rid of stuff. We all should be Döstädning. However, if you’re the one doing the shopping, I would recommend seeking advice from someone you trust. Someone like me, for instance. I have a few gift ideas —things I...
I Found Out I Almost Died Two Weeks After It Happened
Hello and welcome back my dear readers. Six weeks of my life are a blur, a challenging state for someone like me who finds detail essential and empowering. I’m always looking for deets. The day I was admitted to the hospital my partner left for Israel to work in the...
Grey Weddings
I welcome all of you. Bear with me as I navigate this new platform. I am writing from the throes of symptomatic Covid rebound. Yes, it’s true. After a week of tolerable Covid symptoms (headaches, fever, body aches), I tested negative. When 1,500 steps felt like...
The Circle of Life
I’m in bed with a nagging cold-not-Covid. My body is exhausted but my mind is full. Grab a tea, hot water with lemon, or a hot toddy and let’s do this. A novel could be written about last weekend in New York. Like most recent visits there, it started with a family...
From Awe to Ahh…
*this post and this week's newsletter were written before the holy day of Yom Kippur, 10/5/22* Last night I dreamed that Mark Ruffalo was cuddled up against me naked, spooning. I’m not sure it was him exactly but it was his type - a crumpled just-got-out-of-bed sexy...
Doing Only as Well as Your Least Healthy Child
You, who are on the roadMust have a code that you can live byAnd so, become yourselfBecause the past is just a goodbye Teach your children wellTheir father's hell did slowly go byAnd feed them on your dreamsThe one they pick's the one you'll know by Don't you ever ask...
Party Like it’s 5783!
Last Sunday evening, Jews all over the world celebrated the start of the year 5783. We began the holiday meal dipping apples in honey to symbolize our wish for a sweet year. Our family went with a mix of traditional classics with a few modern twists: warm home-made...
I’m Done Being Called a Downer
Hey I'm back! I'm sitting in the kitchen with my laptop, noshing on homegrown pears as I reflect on the summer of 2022. The highs were exquisite and the lows were pretty damn dark. If you want me to photoshop this newsletter, it is not going to happen. I promised...
Three Summer Game-changers
1. Outdoor showers - My grandfather used to say "The best thing about this meal was the porch!" Sort of a backhanded compliment but he was that kind of guy. Just as the same dish tastes better outside, an outdoor shower beats the indoor by a long shot. In summer,...
Worst-kept Secret
On a dark night in Tokyo, we were on a mission to find Ben Fiddich. The address was right but there was no sign. Had it closed since our friend had been there? We entered a sketchy elevator to the 9th floor, climbed a rickety outdoor staircase and walked...
Is It Time to Jump Ship?
Considering the circumstances, do you feel the best you could possibly be feeling? Every day while locked in hotel quarantine, an Australian government social worker called me and posed that question. I thought it was a clever way to ask and it gave me pause to really...